A memorable place in Ulyanovsk - the Park of Friendship of Peoples has been the hallmark of the city for many years in the USSR. In the post-Soviet space, many changes awaited him, but he is still known throughout the country.
Symbolic idea
The picturesque coast of the Volga in Soviet times was not well equipped. Back in the 40s, it was planned to ennoble the shores of Ulyanovsk with gardens, but because of frosts they died. Therefore, it was decided to create a park, which was also conceived as a gift from the state to the homeland of V.I. Lenin on his anniversary. It symbolized the respect and affection of the union republics, the unity of nations in one big country.
The project was put forward by Alexander Brosman in 1966, 4 years before the centennial of the Bolshevik leader. The idea was supported, the best artists and architects began to work on the creation of a large-scale object. Several dozen masters were involved in the preparation of the territory. Residents of Ulyanovsk themselves were no exception, they organized subbotniks and cleared the site.
Initial view
The park’s birth year was 1969, when a flower lawn, a symbol of Kyrgyzstan, was fully equipped and a cotton box representing Uzbekistan was delivered. Friendship of Peoples Park glorified Ulyanovsk. An area of 36 hectares made it one of the largest in the USSR. The hilly area suggested a multi-level device, therefore, the upper and lower tiers were officially allocated.
The upper part was common, and the lower part was divided into 15 separate pavilions - each for each republic, - the small-town VDNH. On each site there were sculptures, monuments, arbors and other architectural structures characteristic of the culture of the people. A huge inscription “Lenin” was planted from the bushes of barberry, which is still visible. In the 80s, a cable car was installed to admire the beauties of the park. It turned out a great place to relax for citizens.
Something went wrong…
The decline of culture during perestroika marked the "beginning of the end" of the park. With the collapse of the USSR, the former brotherhood of the republics was lost, funding for sites and guards ceased. The territory began to overgrow with impassable bushes, and masterpieces of architecture quickly snapped up local bandits for scrap. Only a few monuments have been preserved.
By the mid-90s, the favorite place of the townspeople became an abandoned, overgrown with weeds wasteland. Peoples' Friendship Park in Ulyanovsk in the photo looks like an impenetrable jungle.
And still the remnants of beauty are disfigured by vandals. From the statues there are only frames, the walls are “decorated” with indecent inscriptions.
Modern ruins
The first and main thing that catches your eye is the famous flowerbed with the inscription "Lenin", best preserved. The pictures taken illustrate how the letters changed with a difference of 40 years. An old photo of the Park of Friendship of Peoples in Ulyanovsk can be seen below.
Also not the latest (already 30 years later) shows the following photo.
Surrounding objects are either completely destroyed or continue to collapse every year. Every year, actions are taken to clean up the territory, which are rarely crowned with success. The collected garbage remains in the park - there is no one to take it out. Several times they tried to restore the cultural object, but the controversial issue of its belonging and the need for the state did not allow to complete what was started.
Different goals - same attendance
Earlier, tourists and residents of Ulyanovsk visited the Park of Friendship of Peoples for family vacations, walks in the fresh air and cultural education, but now such pleasures are only remembered. However, there are many visitors to the “ruins”. Now tour groups come here to listen to the facts and present this place 40 years ago.
The park gained particular popularity among lovers of night walks. An abandoned place looks more mysterious in the dark, creates legends among local residents. Therefore, whole excursions are going to the night promenade in the largest Russian "abandoned".
Friendship of Peoples Park in Ulyanovsk: interesting facts from the past and present
The project was so valuable to the creators and the people that the park received the most attention. Careful coverage, many police stations and patrols with dogs - offenders were severely punished. It was strictly forbidden to litter, even husk from seeds was punished!
"Plots of peoples" were not just symbolic, they really belonged to representatives of the republics. They themselves ennobled and allocated funds to maintain a decent view of the sites.
The RSFSR itself belonged to the most ascetic section, however paradoxical it may sound. It was the Russian pavilion that was decorated very modestly when the territories of the other republics were distinguished by their color.
The construction existed only at the expense of the forces and money of volunteers. After the collapse of the Union, it turned out that officially the park does not belong to anyone! That is, everything that was done was exclusively the desire of representatives of the republics to create a memorable place for recreation. And when unity was lost, nobody needed the park - it was “no man's land”.
The gloominess of the abandoned park attracted director Andrei Tarkovsky. It was here that the film "Stalker" was made on the work of the Strugatsky brothers "Picnic on the sidelines." The aesthetics of neglect has become suitable for creating a dead zone atmosphere.
Until now, the most desperate athletes go for a run on the destroyed paths. Teenagers arrange among the ruins of the game: paintball, hide and seek, "Stalker" in reality.
Future plans
In 2017, the Ulyanovsk Agency for Housing Mortgage Lending and the Strelka Moscow company took seriously the project for the restoration and modernization of the zone. According to information on the First Ulyanovsk portal it is planned:
- strengthen the slope;
- zoning the territory;
- completely upgrade asphalt tracks;
- build a sports and playground;
- establish small architectural forms, restore the remaining ones.
So far, the changes will affect the upper tier of the park, the area of the territory being developed will be approximately 5 hectares (out of a total of 36, but this is only the beginning). Some recreations are planned to be brought to their original appearance.
Shrubs of barberry, from which the pseudonym of the leader of the proletariat is formed, is also planned to be replaced. Despite the service life of 25 years, they survived for half a century, but the last few years have been actively destroyed by showers. The author of the modernization project Andrei Kobzev said that the first thing will be restored flower beds in the pavilions of the republics. In the upper part there are bicycle paths, gazebos, modern coffee houses, as well as venues for concerts and festivals.
Where is the Park of Friendship of Peoples in Ulyanovsk?
The park is located between the city center and the Volga, on the descent to its shore. It offers breathtaking views of the river and bridges. In the immediate vicinity is the apartment-museum of V.I. Lenin, the memorial of the same name. Several museums:
- regional art;
- Simbirsk classical gymnasium;
- Goncharov Museum.
An abandoned park can be seen in the very center of the Ulyanovsk infrastructure. The exact address of the Park of Friendship of Peoples: Ulyanovsk, descent of Stepan Razin, d. 33.